Seven Black former employees of an Idaho-based door-making company who worked at an Aurora location have filed a federal lawsuit against their employer, alleging they were called \u201cmonkeys\u201d by a supervisor, were passed over for jobs and promotions in favor of white workers and were fired unlawfully because of their race.<\/p>\n
The lawsuit was filed against Woodgrain Inc., with headquarters in Fruitland, Idaho, in U.S. District Court in Colorado.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe breadth of Woodgrain\u2019s racially discriminatory practices reflects a pattern and practice of intentional discrimination on the basis of race against African Americans that cuts across departments and permeates Woodgrain\u2019s Aurora facility,\u201d the lawsuit states.<\/p>\n
The plaintiffs allege that one of the managers at Woodgrain\u2019s Aurora facility called several of the Black employees \u201cmonkeys\u201d last fall, and referenced them engaging in a lewd act with a coconut. The employees \u201cwere shocked by this blatantly racist comment,\u201d the lawsuit states, and one of them told the manager he sounded like \u201can Alabama slave master saying things like that.\u201d<\/p>\n
The lawsuit alleges that management at Woodgrain, which is described in the document as \u201cone of the nation\u2019s largest molding, millwork and door manufacturing companies,\u201d never addressed their complaints with remedial or disciplinary action and effectively attempted to sweep the matter under the rug.<\/p>\n
A request for comment from Woodgrain wasn\u2019t immediately returned Tuesday.<\/p>\n
Plaintiff Ron Lamb, a production manager with Woodgrain, told The Denver Post he had worked for a prior company, TrimCo Millwork, for nearly 10 years before it was bought by Woodgrain in late 2023.<\/p>\n
\u201cI never had a writeup \u2014 all I did was move up,\u201d said Lamb, 56.<\/p>\n
The new Woodgrain managers who came in last year \u201cpulled the rug out from under me,\u201d Lamb said Tuesday.<\/p>\n
\u201cFor me being there as a senior manager, it hurt me so bad,\u201d he said of the devolving situation he found himself in. \u201cWhen that started happening, I\u2019m not in any more meetings. I\u2019ve been in this building for 10 years. It was humiliating to me.\u201d<\/p>\n
His 30-year-old son, Darius Wynn, is also a plaintiff.<\/p>\n
The lawsuit, filed on May 21, states that a new manager who started at the Aurora facility last year wanted to change the culture at Woodgrain, which plaintiffs argue included \u201creplacing African-American employees with white employees.\u201d<\/p>\n
The lawsuit accuses the manager of hiring \u201cyoung white employees\u201d with little or no experience in door and molding processing.<\/p>\n
\u201cMany of these new white employees would be placed in identical positions to long-tenured Black and Hispanic employees, including plaintiffs,\u201d the lawsuit reads. \u201cDespite working the same jobs, many of the new white employees at the Aurora facility earned more than their Black and Hispanic counterparts.\u201d<\/p>\n